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Papua New Guinea
Structure Papua New Guinea is located approximately 100 miles north of Australia and is comprised of over 600 islands. It gained independence from Australia in 1975 and has a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy system. With an estimated 45% of Papua New Guinea’s 5.2 million population under the age of 15 and with over 800 different languages spoken throughout the country’s 20 provinces, the present government aims at upgrading and improving the system and quality of education through the National Department of Education’s National Plan for Education (2005 - 2014). Education is not compulsory in Papua New Guinea. It has a decentralised framework that requires each province to undertake the responsibility for planning, financing, staffing and maintaining educational institutions. The educational structure of Papua New Guinea consists of three years of Elementary (ages 6 – 8) and six years of Primary (ages 9 – 14) education in what is collectively referred to as Basic Education, and four years of Secondary Education'' ''(ages 15 – 19). Students may gain employment after completing the Basic Education years, enter Vocational Institutes or continue on to secondary education. After grade 10 students may enter Technical Institutes. Tertiary Education requires the completion of Grade 12 of the secondary education route. However, the education system faces a number of challenges, such as poor access to schools and low student retention rates and issues. It can be difficult for children to attend school, especially in the rural areas, due to issues such as the distance from villages to schools, a lack of transport, and the cost of school fees.'' '''Underlying Concepts Physical Education is taught at all levels of schooling in Papua New Guinea. At times, it is incorporated within larger content areas, such as in the Me and My Health'' ''strand within the Culture and Community subject in the elementary years and the Movement and Physical Activity'' ''strand in the'' ''Personal Development'' ''program at the lower secondary level. However, it is a “stand alone” subject in the primary and upper secondary levels. Consistent across all levels is the notion that Physical Education experiences are important for the acquisition and mastery of physical skills'' ''through participation in games, sports, fitness, and recreational activities. It is hoped that through such experiences students will value a physically active lifestyle and make informed decisions about physical health and wellbeing. Key Aspects of Learning The'' elementary ''years are considered as a foundational base for future success. Fundamental goals of the Me and My Health'' ''strand are to promote a healthy self '' and the development of ''physical and mental skills for fitness, leisure, and a healthy lifestyle. Within the strand, movement skills are promoted through participation in the following...'' ''Basic Movements (balancing, rolling, running, jumping, kicking, etc.) '' ''Creative Games Traditional Games and Activities Healthy Living Activities'' In the ''primary'' ''level years, children are exposed to programming that emphasizes both structured and unstructured and physical activities. It is hoped that such experiences will provide students with opportunities to understand the basic concepts of movement and acquire basic movement skills and patterns. The program is divided in to three distinct strands: '''''Safety, Movement, and Physical Activity. Students are expected to experience...'' ''Safety Procedures for Safe Play Fundamental Movement Skills related to Sports and Games (Land and Water Based) '' ''Fitness and Health-Related Activities Leisure and Recreational Activities'' Physical Education is incorporated within the Personal Development syllabus at the ''Lower Secondary'' ''Level. The '''''Healthy Living'' ''and Fitness and Me'' ''strands are the main areas where physical education outcomes are to be met. Within the strands, movement skills are promoted through participation in a wide variety of sport activities such as boxing, cricket, hockey, netball, soccer and rugby, etc. and fitness activities such as walking, yoga, rock climbing, jogging, and sailing, etc. At the grade 9 level, at least four sports or fitness activities must be addressed and at the grade 10 level at least three. It is expected that students are exposed to…'' ''Selection and Performance of Basic Skills appropriate to Activity Understanding a Range of Physical Activities ''Identification of Strategies and Improvement of Fitness Physical Fitness for Healthy Life Team Work and Fair Play At the ''upper secondary'' ''level, the program is organised around the central theme of human movement and the settings where it takes place. The intention is to engage students in activities at a complex level in order to develop constructive attitudes, values and understanding toward and of physical activity. Thereby, encouraging lifelong participation in healthy lifestyle choices that promote holistic wellness. The program comprises of…'' ''Body in Action Analysis of Physical Activity Health in Physical Activity Administration in Sports and Physical Activity Socio-Psychological Elements of Physical Activity Recreation, Leisure and Careers in Physical Activity'' '''Development Papua New Guinea’s geographical proximity and political association with Australia has assisted in promoting opportunities for support for education. Challenges such as poor access to schools, low retention rates, standard of school buildings, teacher quality and lack of required teaching and educational materials have been identified in the Papua New Guinea – Australia Partnership for Development. This aid program aims to support the Papua New Guinea Government’s education plans and priorities, including the National Education Plan 2005–2014,''' the ''Universal Basic Education Plan 2010–2019'', and the ''Papua New Guinea Universities Review''. Assessment, Implementation and Development Assessment of learning outcomes is expected to be an integral part of the physical education teaching/learning process with teachers utilizing a variety of strategies. The assessment of Physical Education experiences is conducted through internal assessment only. No external examinations are held for Physical Education learning. Throughout all the different levels of schooling, the assessment of successful performance in practical physical activity is emphasized. Throughout the different levels, Physical Education is expected to be taught between two to three times per week. Most new teachers in Papua New Guinea possess a grade 12 level of education and three years of study at a tertiary institution. Secondary teachers train for four years with a subject area specialty. A 2008 Papua New Guinea statistical report suggests that of the 305 secondary teachers at one of the institutions that have teacher education programming only 3 are Physical Education specialists. At the elementary and primary level, classroom teachers teach Physical Education. Physical Education specialists are not utilized until the secondary level.